Global SITREP A18-13: "Come to Periscope Depth..."

08 August 2013: In this SITREP we're going to take a look into the future, but not the Biblical prophetic future you're probably used to.  For this look forward we're going to use a man-made periscope for our future forecast.

Norfolk, VA. Above is a US Navy photograph of carrier row in Naval Station Norfolk, Virgina taken last December. It's a crowded set of piers in this photo. Given the way in which our national treasure has been squandered by the current Administration and Congress those piers may well have already seen their heyday. According to a report posted today by the Norfolk area PilotOnline.com titled "Hope of Saving Carriers Sinking as Cash Dries Up," paints a pretty dismal picture for both US National Security and the economy of Virginia where half of our carrier fleet has their homeport. 

In a nutshell, unless Congress does something drastic to mitigate $500 billion in defense cuts over the next ten years the loss of at least three entire Carrier Strike Groups (CSGs) is all but certain. The CSGs led by the carriers USS George Washington, USS John C. Stennis and USS Harry S. Truman (fourth from left in above image) will become the leading candidates to be mothballed when their mid-life refueling cycle rolls around. The loss of these carriers would have a drastic effect on America's ability to project power, and therefore regional stability, around the world from that day forward. With just 8 carriers, or even just 7 in a worst case scenario, we would be hard pressed to have just one CSG deployed to the Atlantic and one to the Pacific at the same time. However, with America's strategic focus looking towards the Pacific Rim, Norfolk may end up taking most of the projected cuts in our fleet. If you haven't written or spoken to your elected representatives in a while, now would be a good time to start, before it too late.

Russia: Much has been made in the media of late about President Obama "snubbing" Russian President Vladimir Putin by refusing to meet with him at a Moscow summit. Don't believe a word of it; smoke and mirrors designed to make The One look tough. He ain't tough; it's a ruse and the jokes on you if you happen believe it. Obama refuses to talk to the American people about the alleged Al Qaeda terrorist threat over which our embassies in nearly two dozen Islamic countries have been closed, but Obama can never refuse to meet his pal Vladimir Putin, at least now that he has "more flexibility." The fact of the matter is that Obama will be attending the G20 economic summit in St. Petersburg, Russia in a few weeks time. He will meet with Vladimir Putin at that summit.

Israel: There a pretty good chance that in some near-term future war involving Israel that the IDF will press into service an airborne vehicle that glides just two feet above ground level like the fictional landspeeder that Luke Skywalker used in the Star Wars movies. The image above is of a very low flying UAV called the AirMule which being developed for the IDF by the Israel aerospace company Urban Aeronautics. The IDF plans to use this real-world landspeeder to ferry supplies to the troops on the front lines and return wounded back to field hospitals, among other tasks that will invariably reveal themselves on a future battlefield.  And if you think this is just a little too fanciful, consider this: the very able working prototype went from being a piece of concept artwork to functioning reality in less than three years. One might wonder what other ideas movie makers have placed in the minds of combat developers. Hmm?